The Way Out of Poverty

Patrick O. Okigbo III, in conversation with Olushola Afolayan

Although Nigeria shed the infamous sobriquet, the “Poverty Capital of the World,” 63 per cent of its population (or 133 million people) are multidimensionally poor. The situation is worse in rural Nigeria, where 7 out of 10 people are poor. Note that 70 per cent of Nigerians live in rural areas. The northern part of the country is worse off (65 per cent of the poor), but the southern parts are not immune from the problem. For instance, the southeastern region, performing relatively better in the last survey (2018), is worse today.

What are poverty’s multifaceted dimensions in Nigeria? What are the root causes? How is the government collaborating with its partners to address this challenge? Which poverty prevention programmes succeeded or failed, and why? What are the elements of a successful poverty alleviation programme? What are the challenges with creating such a programme? How can an engaged government implement programmes changing Nigeria’s poverty narrative?

Join Patrick O. Okigbo III, Founding Partner at Nextier, and Olushola Afolayan, a Poverty Reduction Expert, to discuss these questions. Until recently, Olushola was the National Coordinator of Nigeria’s Multidimensional Poverty Index at the Presidency. She was an Embedded Advisor at Nigeria’s National Social Investment Office. Earlier in her career, she was a Senior Special Assistant on Job Creation to the Governor of Ondo State. She worked for Chevron’s PIND Foundation and several development programmes managed by Adam Smith International, Coffey, TetraTech, British Council, etc. She founded the Social Impact, Healthcare, and Education (SHE) Foundation. She was a member of the Technical Working Group for the 2021-2025 Medium-Term National Development Plan.

Nextier, a multi-competency advisory firm, uses its Development Discourse to probe for answers to complex development questions. Please find the event details below:

Date: Wednesday, May 01, 2024
Time: 15:00-16:30 (WAT)
Registration here